, 1887-07-26
. MODEL INSTITUTION.
Making a Flying Trip to the Post
PerCheron Ranch.
A Suburban Cottage with All
Modern Conveniences.
Some Fine Features Introduced by
Intelligent Management.

A few years ago it would have been
considered a very remarkable fact to have
passed a ranch house and seen one of the
boys gravely engaged in sprinkling the
lawn. 1t would have been considered
ven more remarkable to find hot and cold
water fawcets in the sleeping apartments
and a modern bath room among the many
conveniences. If instead of the roughly
hewn logs composing the cabin they should
accidentally stumble on q pretty suburban
cottage, with the peaked gables affected
in modern architecture, find rugs on the
polished hardwood floors, fine pictures
looking down from the walls, a well
selected library and a dining room service
Of tip top quality, the tourist of a few
years ago would have been paralyzed with
amazement. Even now these things are
not so common on the range that they fail
to attract attention and excite comment.
A. j. Parshall, cashier of Posts bank,
and a LEADER reporter took a ride be-
hind a pair of feet-footed horses Sunday
morning, for the purpose of visiting the
ranch of the Post Percheron company,
which is situated fourteen miles northeast
of the city.
The surroundings of the home ranch
have undergone wonderful changes since
Mr.. w. FL. Force has taken charge of the
practical work. The quarters for the
men consist of a very large two-story
building, well constructed and well ar
ranged. The house occupied by Mr..
Force looks like a cottage. Its interior
adornment shows the artistic taste of the
occupant Books. bric-a-brac and pictures
are met at every turn. The water supply
is secured from a well l25 feet deep, from
which the water is forced by a windmill
into a reservoir. From this reservoir the
house is supplied by means of hydrants.
An ice house in the rear forms an inter
esting subject for contemplation in such
weather as this.
Some of the finest strains of equine
blood in the United States may now be
seen at Posts ranch. Locked up In the
immense barn are horses with pedigrees
straight from the French government,
massive Percherons, and sleek-coated
French coach horses that are the very
ideals of equine beauty. 1t is worth going
miles to simply see them.
A party consisting of Mr.. and Mrs.
G. d. Kirkland, Mr.. and Mrs. Bert
Richey, Mrs. Fred Clary and George K.
McGill were already at the ranch, the
guests of Mr.. Force. The method of
breaking horses to harness and of bust
ing b%ronchos," as the cowboys put it, re-
ceived practical illustration, and the
scene were caught in the camera through
the def manipulations of Charley Kirk
land. In fact, as some of tho party ex-
pressed it, a genuine wild west show was
arranged for their benefit, in which dar-
ing riding, bucking horses, a tame ante
lope and a pet elk took conspicuous parts.
A dinner prepared by Mrs. Lecomte,
wife of the foreman, was a revelation of
good cooking.
The main party returned to town at 6
o'clock, with great eclat, in MI. Forces
new English drag drawn by four large
bays, who were Respondent in polished
brass-mounted harness. Mr.. ParshaIl
and The LEADER reporter returned by
the less pretentious method of a buggy.
but they got here just the same.